page_title: Eifel Aqueduct
section_title: Above-ground sections
hierarchical_section_title: Eifel Aqueduct / Above-ground sections
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Teilstück der römischen Eifelwasserleitung nach Köln im nahen Hürth-Hermülheim. Die Pfeiler und Segmentbögen des nach 50 n. Chr. gebauten Aquäduktes ruhen auf der älteren Vorgebirgsleitung aus dunkelblauem Basaltstampfbeton. Die überdachte Wasserrinne oberhalb der Bogenscheitel wurde aus Anschauungsgründen rekonstruiert. English: Section of the Roman Eifel Aqueduct to Cologne at nearby Hürth-Hermülheim. Piers and segmental arches of the aqueduct, erected after 50 AD, rest on the older Vorgebirgsleitung (made of dark blue basalt concrete). The covered conduit above the apex of the arches was reconstructed for illustrative reasons.
context_page_description: The Eifel Aqueduct was one of the longest aqueducts of the Roman Empire.
  The aqueduct, constructed in AD 80, carried water some 95 kilometres from the hilly Eifel region of what is now Germany to the ancient city of Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium. If the auxiliary spurs to additional springs are included, the length was 130 kilometres. The construction was almost entirely below ground, and the flow of the water was produced entirely by gravity. A few bridges, including one up to 1,400 metres in length, were needed to pass over valleys. Unlike some of the other famous Roman aqueducts, the Eifel aqueduct was specifically designed to minimize the above-ground portion to protect it from damage and freezing.
context_section_description: For various reasons, the Eifel aqueduct has very few above-ground sections, unlike other Roman aqueducts, such as the Pont du Gard in southern France:
  The course of the aqueduct was chosen so as to avoid the need for such constructions.
  By construction underground, the aqueduct was protected from freezing.
  The water arriving in Cologne had a pleasant temperature due to the insulating properties of the ground.
  In case of war, the aqueduct would be less easily damaged.
  Nonetheless, there are a few places where bridges or other constructions were necessary. The most notable was an arched bridge over the Swistbach near Rheinbach that was 1,400 metres (0.87 mi) long and up to 10 metres (33 ft) high. Archaeologists calculate that the original bridge had 295 arches, each 3.56 metres (11.7 ft) wide, but the bridge has been reduced to rubble with the passage of the years.
  A smaller arched bridge crossed a valley near Mechernich. This was some 10 metres (33 ft) tall and 70 metres (230 ft) long. The archaeological remains were in good enough condition here that a partial reconstruction was built to show how the original must have looked.
caption: Above-ground section at Hürth near Cologne
exif: {"Image Make": "Panasonic", "Image Model": "DMC-TZ2", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows", "Image DateTime": "2009:10:10 15:29:25", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image CustomRendered": "Normal", "Image ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "Image WhiteBalance": "Auto", "Image DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "Image FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "Image SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "Image GainControl": "Low gain up", "Image Contrast": "Normal", "Image Saturation": "Hard", "Image Sharpness": "Hard", "Image PrintIM": "[80, 114, 105, 110, 116, 73, 77, 0, 48, 50, 53, 48, 0, 0, 14, 0, 1, 0, 22, 0, ... ]", "Image ExifOffset": "564", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "1018", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "7600", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/13", "EXIF FNumber": "33/10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "200", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2009:10:05 17:06:18", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2009:10:05 17:06:18", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "4", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "33/100", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "86/25", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "23/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3288", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2694", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed"}